As the sun rose on a surprisingly chilly Sunday morning in Hyderabad, a group of ten made our way into Naya Qila-turned-golf course, a few minutes away from Golconda Fort.
As we all gathered together, Gopal Krishna, our guide for the walk, started off with the introductions. With software professional to corporate lawyer, college student to school kid, ours was a varied group of individuals, but with the same enthusiasm to know more about the history and culture of our beloved city of pearls.
After the introductions, we climbed up a part of the fort. The climb was challenging and definitely made up for missing my morning walk.
The view from the top of the fort was breath-taking. We could see the entire fort wall of Naya Qila, and the city beyond. No other spot in Hyderabad today can give you two of the most important structures of Qutb Shahi dynasty – Golconda Fort and Qutb Shahi Tombs, in a single frame.
And no other place can boast of this unique view of Golconda Fort. It was the perfect place with the perfect view to celebrate 500 years of this majestic Fort.
Knowing very well how social-media-addicts today’s world is, Gopal gave all of us a few minutes to click pictures and take selfies, before starting his talk.
And here comes the history and importance of Naya Qila, from our guide Gopal:
- Naya Qila was used as a pleasure garden, Bagh-i-Qutb, by the Qutb Shahi dynasty. You could say it is the Qutb Shahi version of Mughal gardens.
- Though used as a pleasure garden, the Qila was built for an altogether different purpose.
- During the first attack to the Golconda Fortby Aurangzeb, the Mughal army camped at hillock we were presently standing on.
- This hillock was at the same level as the Golconda Fort and gave the Mughals an advantage to fire cannons and capture the Fort.
- Fortunately, the Fort survived, though some of its walls were weakened.
- Sultan Abdullah Qutb Shah, the then ruler of the Golconda, realized that the hillock was a weak-link to the fort and ordered an extension of the Golconda Fort up to the hillock.
- Thus, began the construction of Naya Qila!
Even today, we can see the cannons forged by Aurangzeb to attack Golcanda Fort.
Before we started our climb down, we all took a moment to immerse ourselves into the beauty of this place.
It truly couldn’t be a better start to the day – standing in the golden glow of the sun, surrounded by historical structures, listening to parrots and other birds chirping, and filled with the new knowledge of Hyderabad’s history and culture.
We walked across the well-manicured lawns of the golf course, and made our way to the Mosque of Mustafa Khan.
- This was a mosque used only by women.
- In order to respect the women’s pardah, the walls on all sides are high and the only opening is the small entrance door on one of the walls.
- There are also ancient tombs in the mosque, supposedly of the women who were of special importance to the Qutb Shahi dynasty.
One of the specialities of Hyderabad Trails walks is the spontaneity and freedom to express oneself. The group has the liberty to ask any question, not only related to the specific monument the walk is for, but also anything else related to the history of Hyderabad.
Sitting in the Mosque of Mustafa Khan, Gopal answered questions from the group and enlightened us on the speciality of Charminar and the purpose of its construction and its history.
We also spoke on the present state of affairs at Naya Qila and the unfortunate conversion of it into a golf course.
Gopal also encourages the participants of the walk to express themselves, share stories and interact with one another.
One of the ladies in our walk, who loves stories and tells them to young children as a hobby, shared a story with us.
As the day began, sitting in the mosque, we all were captivated by her words and voice modulation. The story ‘The mountain and The Bird’ was simple and beautiful. It spoke about many things including gratitude and conserving our environment.
Apart from exploring the hidden treasures of Hyderabad’s rich heritage, it is these small and unique moments that I come to experience at Hyderabad Trails walks.
Our last stop of the walk was at the famous Baobab tree. Gopal explained:
- It is a 700-year-old tree and is not a native of Hyderabad.
- It was brought from Madagascar by traders and planted here.
- There are only 4 or 5 of these in the Deccan plateau and they are all in Hyderabad.
- There is cave formed between the branches of the tree and during one of the previous walks, around 40 people gathered in the cave inside the tree.
- Behind this tree lies the Mulla Khayali mosque, which is now locked and entry is prohibited.
This is where we all said our goodbyes.
And as it always happens on such walks, I never realize how the two – two-and-a-half hours pass. My Sunday morning was filled with history lessons, simple & short stories and fun and laughter.
– Megha K
Hyderabad Trails 